Monday, December 10, 2012

Kabul Willing to Hand Taliban Control of South and East Afghanistan

There's apparently a deal afoot to have Pakistan negotiate an odd peace treaty/capitulation deal between Kabul and the Taliban that is said to include giving the Talibs effective control of their southern and eastern strongholds in Afghanistan.

The plan envisions ending the war by 2015 through a ceasefire and
negotiations in the second half of next year, most likely in Saudi
Arabia. Pakistan would help select the leaders of the Taliban and other
rebel groups who would take part in the negotiations with the Afghan
government. The effort, the plan says, should be conducted “through one
consistent and coherent channel,” a measure that would secure a role for
Afghan President Hamid Karzai after the end of his term following April
2014 elections. Another provision would give the insurgents a voice on “issues
related . . . to the withdrawal” of the U.S.-led NATO force by the end
of 2014.

The plan foresees the United States working with Kabul
and Islamabad in determining which insurgent leaders would participate.
The United States also would be critical to approving the removal of the
insurgent negotiators from the U.N.’s list of terrorists.

In other words, kids, we spent a decade in Afghanistan for essentially squat. Even if a peace deal like this was negotiated, keeping peace in a country so rent by tribalism and warlordism truly is tantamount of herding cats, only these cats have guns.